A Message from the City

Today, the City is the 8th largest economy in NSW, with a gross regional product estimated at $15.53 billion for 2019

(The National Institute of Economic and Industry Research).

Over the next 15 years, Canterbury-Bankstown (CBCity) will undergo a major and exciting transformation.

Our Community Strategic Plan, CBCity 2036, outlines the community’s vision to be Prosperous and Innovative. In our Local Strategic Planning Statement, Connective City 2036, Council has outlined a bold plan to become a city equal to that of any other across Australia. A creative city, connected to the rest of Sydney, and a destination that people naturally desire to live in, work in, and go to. A city which also has a vibrant and bustling night time economy offering distinct experiences for all. In short, a city that is thriving, dynamic and real.

We currently have the largest population of any NSW council, with nearly 378,000 (2019 ABS ERP) people from over 120 ancestry groups, and over the next 15 years, we’ll see this diverse group grow to half a million.

Although currently in the Covid pandemic, there are a pipeline of major developments and infrastructure projects in place (or in concept or planning stage), which will see the 118,000 people currently working in CBCity expand to 155,000 by 2036.

These game-changing projects include:

• A new metro line due to commence operation in 2024 to improve connectivity to the Sydney CBD, and investigations underway to extend this through to Liverpool and the new Western Sydney aerotropolis; • A new $350 Million Western Sydney

University campus, which is currently being built in Bankstown CBD, and will help attract 25,000 students to the City by 2036 and to grow the education sector generally; • A proposed new $1.3 Billion Lidcombe

Bankstown Hospital in the Bankstown

CBD, which will draw in associated and allied health and research services, and a projected private sector hospital; • A Complete Streets Plan for the CBD with distinct pedestrianised areas for dining, events, recreation and night life; • Planning proposals for the redevelopment of major sites around the Bankstown CBD, including the Vicinity site at Bankstown

Central; • Planning controls in place for the addition of up to half a million square metres of new high-grade retail and commercial space in

Bankstown and Campsie; • The transformation of Campsie into an

Eastern Lifestyle District with an upgraded hospital, aspirations to see an organisation like SBS relocate to the area, and the potential to become a central hub for creative industries, employing 7,500 additional people in the City; • A flourishing night time economy; • An “Industrial Innovation Corridor” between

Bankstown – Bankstown Airport – Liverpool –

Aerotropolis; and, • An alliance with Central Sydney Councils (such as Parramatta, Inner West, Cumberland and Georges River) to drive central transport connections The City of Canterbury-Bankstown is truly one of Sydney’s greatest assets. Council will continue to partner with our key stakeholders, including our local businesses and community, to implement this Strategy and attract investment from across the State and beyond.

CBCity has the second highest number of registered businesses in the State, and Council envisions vast opportunities as these numbers increase both in real terms and in the number of people they employ. This growth also offers enormous opportunity for social change for young people, migrants and refugees.